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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. stock — shares
  5. stock — goods
  6. hand — in cards
  7. prune — to trim
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bear — the animal
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. bear — the animal
  13. shower — to wash
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. wax — to grow
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. present — a gift
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. hand — help
  20. shower — rain
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. present — there
  23. present — the time now
  24. hand — part of the body

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com